First group of Afghans who helped American troops are flown to the US

A total of about 2,500 Afghans are set to be resettled in the US under Operation Allies Refuge. [Forward to a friend]( | [Subscribe]( | [View in your browser]( [Top of The World]( --------------------------------------------------------------- What The World is following First group of Afghans who helped American troops are flown to the US [Inside of US visa's center at Embassy of the United States of America is shown in Kabul, Afghanistan, July 30, 2021.] Credit: Mariam Zuhaib/AP Afghans flown to US The [first flight of about 250 Afghans]( who helped American troops arrived in the United States. They include interpreters, drivers and others who helped the US military, and their family members. They will stay at a hotel at the [Fort Lee Army base]( in Virginia for about a week for processing, after which they will be [permanently resettled]( in the US. They’re the first of about 2,500 people chosen for resettlement under Operation Allies Refuge as the Taliban gains ground in Afghanistan. The other groups are expected to arrive roughly three days apart. And about 4,000 other Afghans whose applications still need approvals will be sent to third countries, possibly to Qatar, Kuwait, Kazakhstan or Kosovo. Mexico referendum Mexico will hold its [first national referendum]( on Sunday to determine if former presidents can be put on trial for corruption while in office. It would prosecute the [past five ex-presidents](. The [Supreme Court approved the referendum]( in October, which was put forward by current President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and Congress then backed the proposal. This is the [first referendum]( to be overseen by the country’s electoral agency, INE, and the first official one to be held at a national level. Electric vehicles Joe Biden and major carmakers are negotiating a pledge to make electric [at least 40%]( of all cars and SUVs sold in 2030, under the president’s climate goals. The push comes as UN climate talks are just over three months away. Meanwhile, the UK plans to [ban the sale]( of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, and hybrids by 2035, making cars become electric or use hydrogen fuel cells by 2050. --------------------------------------------------------------- From The World [After raid and arrest, Russian journalist ‘will just keep doing my job,’ he says]( [Roman Dobrokhotov, chief editor of The Insider walks surrounded police officers and journalists, in Moscow, July 28, 2021.]( Credit: Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP In Russia, the crackdown on journalism continues. On Wednesday, police in Russia raided the home of Roman Dobrokhotov, editor-in-chief of The Insider, an independent, investigative media outlet. Dobrokhotov told The World's host Marco Werman that the real motivation for the police was that they likely wanted "to get access to my computers and telephones and know more about our investigations," [Dobrokhotov said](. "And the second reason is they just wanted to put some pressure. Of course, for me, it changed nothing. But for a young journalist, they can really be afraid that something like this can happen to them." [Southern Spain's green-belt project aims to stave off impending desertification]( [The region of southern Spain is facing desertification.]( Credit: Gerry Hadden/The World Climate change affects different regions differently. While Germany has seen record floods, as much as 75% of Spain is in danger of becoming a desert. But, an ambitious [green-belt project is working to counter desertification]( by creating a series of contiguous forests that would run for hundreds of miles across the country's southern region. --------------------------------------------------------------- Bright spot UNESCO has announced its newest World Heritage Sites. One of them is the oldest solar observatory in the Americas, found in the deserts of northern Peru. [The site is called Chankillo](, and it dates back to the year 230 BC. The physical structure functioned as a calendar, using the rising and setting arcs of the sun to define the time of year to within one or two days. And, it is the third site in Peru to be added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list in just over a decade. [View of the Chankillo solar observatory near Casma, Peru, July 22, 2021.]( Credit: Janine Costa/AFP via Getty/File photo --------------------------------------------------------------- In case you missed it from The World --------------------------------------------------------------- - [Singer Dobet Gnahoré celebrates women’s rights in her new track]( - [Could the Vatican fraud trial be good for Pope Francis?]( - [Stopping Spain from becoming a desert]( - [In Russia, crackdown on journalism continues with apartment searches and arrests]( - [Women in Sudan after the revolution]( - [Chinese foreign minister meets the Taliban]( - [Ever Given arrives in port four months after blocking Suez Canal]( - [Amid the worsening security situation in Afghanistan, some European countries suspend deportations of Afghans]( - [To mask or not to mask? 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